Chafee won some, lost some in the Assembly

Governor Chafee acknowledges the crowd in January as Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed, right, applauds him as he’s about to speak to the Senate.

By Philip marcelo | | Journal State House Bureau

Governor Chafee acknowledges the crowd in January as SenatePresident M. Teresa Paiva Weed, right, applauds him as he's aboutto speak to the Senate.

The Providence Journal / Bob Thayer

PROVIDENCE - In his first legislative session, Governor Chafeesaw some of his most prominent initiatives wilt before theDemocratic-controlled state General Assembly.

Notably, the Assembly rejected the independent governor's planto overhaul the state sales tax in favor of adopting a more modestexpansion of the sales tax.

Lawmakers also dashed Chafee's hopes for granting gay couplesthe right to marry, instead approving state recognition of civilunions for same- sex couples.

But the governor did score some legislative victories in thesix-month session that ended before the July 4 holiday weekend.

More than half of the 58 bills Chafee submitted on behalf ofstate departments and agencies passed into law this pastlegislative session, according to a list provided by theadministration.

A number represent bills requested over the years by statedepartments and agencies; others were entirely new proposals.

Among those approved was a controversial bill affecting the Cityof Central Falls and all other financially troubled municipalitiestaken over by a state receiver going forward.

That bill sought to strengthen the state's receivership law byreinforcing the receiver's authority to exercise powers held byelected officials of a city or town.

It does so retroactive to May 15, 2010, the date that CentralFalls Mayor Charles Moreau went to court to challenge theconstitutionality of the state law that allowed a state-appointedreceiver to assume control of the city to bring its finances inorder.

Moreau has contended that the law violates the stateConstitution and violates the right of Central Falls voters tochoose their own leaders.

The Assembly also passed a bill that the Chafee administrationhad proposed which requires cities and towns to guarantee lendersfirst rights to property taxes and general revenue in the event ofa bankruptcy.

The administration has argued that the bill will improve theability of all municipalities to borrow money, though the RhodeIsland League of Cities and Towns opposed it.

Another Chafee-backed bill that passed this session imposes anew tax on professional mixed-martial arts fights.

The tax is equal to 5 percent of the total gross receipts fromticket and admission sales, and is the same admission tax alreadyimposed on boxing and wrestling matches.

Still other Chafee proposals that cleared that Assembly includedtwo dealing with prisoners: one bill making it illegal for inmatesto possess cell phones and another providing medical parole forinmates who are severely ill.

About 24 bills pushed by Chafee ultimately died in theAssembly.

Among them was a proposal to require national and localmanufacturers to pay for the collection and disposal of mattresses,paints and medical needles and syringes.

The bill was part of a broader plan by the state Department ofEnvironmental Management to shift some of the burden of wastedisposal onto private companies and away from state and localgovernment.

The proposal represented the administration's effort to codifythe principles of "product stewardship," which is the idea thateveryone involved in the life cycle of a product - from thedesigners, to the manufacturers, sellers and users - shareresponsibility for reducing their negative impacts to theenvironment once they become waste.

Another proposal pushed by Chafee would have prevented state andmunicipal courts - and the Division of Motor Vehicles - fromexpunging driving violations from drivers' records after threeyears, as current law requires.

Chafee wanted the courts and the DMV to keep thosedriving-infraction records for five years.

Instead, the Assembly opted to approve another proposal torequire drivers with three tickets in a year to appear before ajudge at the state Traffic Tribunal or a municipal court.

Both sets of legislation came after Laura Reale, a Westerlywoman with 28 traffic violations, ran a stoplight and killedCharlestown motorcyclist Colin B. Foote.

A Journal analysis of Reale's case highlighted the three-yearexpungement law as one of the ways bad drivers get to keepdriving.

Other Chafee bills that failed in the Assembly:

•HIV: Requiring all persons committed to the AdultCorrectional Institutions in Cranston be tested for the HIV viruseven if they have not been convicted.

•Corrections officers: Giving certain officers in the stateDepartment of Corrections the right to carry concealed weapons inthe state.

•Juvenile delinquents: Permitting the use of electronictracking or monitoring devices on wayward or delinquent youths.

•Retired teachers: Allowing retired teachers and schooladministrators to be temporarily employed by the state and otherpublic education entities as consultants without losing theirretirement benefits. The work would have to be related to thefederal Race to the Top program, which encourages reforms in stateand local education.

•Foreclosure: Prohibiting the foreclosure on property ownedby active duty members of the military, including some NationalGuard and reserve members.

pmarcelo@projo.com

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